Fuse for non-gyratory missiles

ABSTRACT

A fuse provided with two striker-and-detonator systems, one of which operates upon impact against a target and may be manually locked against operation and the other operates only with a predetermined lag after impact. The first system is adapted to be brought in all cases into a ready-for-operation condition at the moment of the firing of the missile, in which condition the member carrying the detonator of the first system is brought within reach of the corresponding striker while it simultaneously releases a safety interceptor extending between the striker and detonator of the system operating with a lag.

United States Patent [191 Simmen et al.

FUSE FOR NON-GYRATORY MISSILES Inventors: Robert Simmen; OlivierChabloz,

both of Geneva, Switzerland Assignee: Mefina S.A., Fribourg, SwitzerlandFiled: Aug. 31, 1972 App]. No.: 285,123

Foreign Application Priority Data Sept. 10, 1971 Switzerland 013289/71US. Cl. 102/74, 102/83 Int. Cl. F42c 9/00 Field of Search 102/74, 75,71, 82, 83

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,173,620 9/1939 Brayton lO2/74Primary Examiner-Samuel W. Engle Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Emory L.Groff; Emory L. Groff, Jr.

[5 7] ABSTRACT A fuse provided with two striker-and-detonator systems,one of which operates upon impact against a target and may be manuallylocked against operation and the other operates only with apredetermined lag after impact. The first system is adapted to bebrought in all cases into a ready-for-operation condition at the momentof the firing of the missile, in which condition the member carrying thedetonator of the first system is brought within reach of thecorresponding striker while it simultaneously releases a safetyinterceptor extending between the striker and detonator of the systemoperating with a lag.

5 Claims, 3 Drawing Figures 44 al.? 1T

FUSE FOR NON-GYRATORY MISSILES Fuses for non-gyratory missiles arealready known, which include a striker operating upon hitting of thetarget, a detonator adapted to move from a position for which it isbeyond reach of the striker into a position for which it lies across thepath of the striker, and a system providing delayed ignition.

The delayed ignition system is intended to allow the missile to enter toa more or less considerable extent into the target and possibly into theground before exploding. In all known missiles, the delay is obtained bymeans of a load of powder inserted between the detonator and the primerand the combustion of which serves for igniting the primer. However, thedelay provided by such arrangements is not uniform and varies inparticular with their ageing.

The present invention has for its object a fuse the delayed ignition ofwhich is independent of the ageing of the fuse and of the storingconditions provided for said fuse.

According to the invention, the improved fuse for non-gyratory missilesis provided in its delayed-ignition system with an auxiliary strikeradapted to act with a lag on a second detonator while locking means areadapted to prevent operation of the main striker operating immediatelyupon impact on the target, if it is desired to delay the explosion ofthe missile.

The accompanying drawings illustrate by way of example an embodiment ofthe fuse improved in accordance with the invention. In said drawings:

FIG. I is a longitudinal cross-section of the fuse.

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary cross-section through line II-II of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a cross-section of a detail through line III- III of FIG. 1.

The fuse illustrated includes a casing l the front section of whichcarries a longitudinally sliding head 2 covered by a readily deformablecap 3 made for instance of plastics. The head 2 is subjected to theaction of a spring 4 which urges it against two guiding studs 5 whichserve as abutments for the rear ends of the guiding grooves 6 formed inthe sliding head 2. To said head 2 is also rigidly secured a mainstriker 7 adapted to produce instantaneously ignition of the maindetonator up to hitting of the missile against the target,

Across the path of the main striker 7, there is fitted a lockingmechanism constituted by a hand-operable rotary member 8 housed inside abore extending radially through the wall of the casing 1. The outer endof said member 8 is in the shape of a screw head while its inner endforms an arcuate projection 9 which enters, according to the angularposition given to the rotary locking member 8, a position eithercrossing the path of the striker 7 or else a position free of said path.The locking and releasing positions of the locking member 8 are definedby two studs 10 and 11 (FIG. 3) forming abutments for the correspondingends of the arcuate projection 9. The main striker 7 serves for ignitingthe missile through action on the detonator ll2 fitted inside a tubularmember 13 slidingly carried inside a longitudinal bore 14 formed insidea support 15 fitted in the casing 1. The tubular member 13 is providedwith an axial bore 16 leading the flame from the burning detonatortowards a safety device 17 the detail of which is not illustrated sinceit is well known per se. Said safety device is provided with at leastone channel connecting, when the missile is cocked, the end of the bore16 with a primer 18 adapted to ignite the missile. A primer may in factbe fitted inside such a channel in the safety device 17.

The sliding tubular member 13 is subjected to the pressure of the spring19 which urges it forwardly, so as to bring the detonator 12 into thevicinity of the main striker 7, so that it may be hit by the latterimmediately the missile impinges on the target. However, the sliding ofthe tubular member 13 is prevented by a further locking mechanismconstituted by an annulus 20 carrying elastic longitudinally directedtongues 21, the rear free ends of which engage on one side a peripheralgroove in the tubular member 13 and, on the other side, a groove in theinner periphery of a sliding sleeve 22 located to the rear of theannulus 20 round the tubular member 113. Said sliding sleeve 22 isnormally held with reference to the member 13 in the positionillustrated in FIG. 1 by a spring 23.

When a shot is fired, the axial acceleration of the missile causes thesleeve 22 to move rearwardly by reason of its inertia with reference tothe body of the missile against the pressure of the spring 23. Thesleeve 22 impinges thus against a shoulder 24 formed on the rear end ofthe tubular member 13, whereby the tongues 21 are released and areshifted downwardly together with the annulus 20 while expandingoutwardly, so to move past the peripheral bead 25 at the lower end ofthe groove in the tubular member 13. At the end of said axialacceleration, the tongues 21 are held in their shifted position to therear of said peripheral bead 25 by the sleeve 22. Consequently, thetubular member 13 is no longer locked in the position illustrated andcan move forwardly inside the missile together with the annulus 20 andthe sleeve 22 under the action of the spring 19. The detonator 12 isthen within operative reach for the striker 7, provided the arcuateprojection 9 is set in the position for which it allows the striker tomove.

The fuse includes, on the other hand, a delayed ignition system of amechanical type, which system is housed inside a longitudinal bore 26parallel with the bore M. This mechanical delayed ignition system formsa structure very similar to the safety mechanism associated with thedetonator 12. It includes an auxiliary striker 27 carried by a support28 subjected to the action of a spring 29 which is normally in anon-tensioned condition. Said support 29 is held in the forward positionillustrated by a sleeve 30 and. an annulus 31 provided with elasticlongitudinal tongues 32 clamped between the sleeve 30 and the support 28in a manner similar to that disclosed for the tongues 21 of the safetymechanism illustrated on the right hand side of FIG. 1; the sleeve 30 issubjected similarly to the pressure of a spring 33.

The spring 29 acting on the support 28 engages the bottom ofa recessformed in a cylindrical block 34 sliding inside the casing l andprovided with a peripheral groove housing an elastic ring 35. Saidsliding cylindrical block is urged rearwardly through inertia uponfiring of a shot, whereby the spring 29 is stressed. When thecylindrical block has thus receded, the ring 35 expands elastically andmoves past the shoulder 36 defining the recess housing the block 34',which latter is thus locked in a position for which the spring 29remains stressed.

The auxiliary striker 27 is adapted to cooperate with an auxiliarydetonator 37 the combustion of which produces a flame which starts theignition of the primer 18 through a second channel in the safety device17.

When the fuse is at rest, it is impossible for the auxiliary striker 27to reach the auxiliary detonator 37 since it is held against rearwardmotion by an interceptor constituted by a pivoting flap 38 clearly shownin FIG. 2. Said flap is subjected to the action ofa spring 39, but it isprevented from moving by a transverse pin 40 slidingly carried in aradial bore formed in the support 15.

The operation of the fuse is as follows, when it is desired to make useof the delayed ignition system:

Firstly, the locking member 8 is set in the position illustrated, so asto cause the striker, when the missile impinges against the target, toabut against said locking member and to prevent it from reaching thedetonator 12.

When the shot has been fired and as already described, the tubularmember 13 carrying the main detonator 12 is released and urged forwardlyby the spring 19. During this movement, it releases a stud 4l lockingthe safety device 17, whereby the channels in the latter are broughtinto a position for which the primer l8 communicates both with the bore16 leading to the main detonator l2 and with the auxiliary d etonator37.

When the shot is fired and as already mentioned, the spring 29 of thedelaying system is also stressed by reason of the rearward movement ofthe block 34. Upon subsequent impinging of the missile against thetarget, the sleeve 30 of the delaying system moves forwardly against theaction of the spring 33 and releases the clastic tongues 32. As soon asthis occurs, the annulus 31 also moves forwardly with the latter. Aftersaid annulus 31 has been thus shifted, the support 28 moves alsoforwardly with the striker 27 towards the front of the missile, The freeend of the striker 27 passes then out of a housing 42 provided for it inthe interceptor 38, so that it is now possible for said flap 38 tocollapse laterally under the action of the spring 39 (FIG. 2), since theradially shiftable pin 40 may then move in its radial bore openingtowards a longitudinal bore 14 in the tubular member 13 of the mainignition system. As soon as the longitudinal acceleration produced bythe arresting of the missile is reduced to zero, the support 28 is urgedrearwardly by the spring 29 and the striker 27 hits the detonator 37 andproduces the desired ignition of the missile.

The fuse described hereinabove is wholly reliable since it can be cockedonly after the shot has been fired and only then can the axialacceleration be sufficiently high and last a sufficiently long time forit to provide for the release of the sliding tubular member 13. As longas the latter has not been shifted, the delayed ignition system cannotoperate; in fact, even if the front end of the missile impinges againsta hindrance with an energy sufficient for it to release the support 28of the auxiliary striker 27, the latter cannot reach the auxiliarydetonator by reason of the presence of the flap 38, while furthermorethe spring 29 is not tensioned.

We claim:

1. In a fuse for a non-gyratory missile, the combination of a mainstriker, a main detonator, means for bringing the detonator into aposition within reach of the main striker at the moment of the firing ofthe missile, said means including'a longitudinally slidable carrier forthe main detonator, a spring urging said carrier member towards the mainstriker, at least one longitudinally shiftable locking member holdingsaid carrier member in an inoperative position and adapted upon firingof the missile to be shifted into a position releasing said carriermember, means causing the main detonator to be struck by the mainstriker upon impact of the missile against a target, hand operable meansinsertable between the main striker and the main detonator to therebyprevent said striker from operatively striking said detonator, anauxiliary striker, an auxiliary detonator, means causing said auxiliarystriker to strike the auxiliary detonator with a perdetermined time lagafter said impact, missile-igniting means actuatable by either detonatorand a safety device extending to the rear of the two detonators andreleased by said locking member when the latter is shifted upon firingof the missile.

2. A fuse as claimed in claim 1, including an interceptor insertedbetween the auxiliary striker and the auxiliary detonator, means wherebythe slidable carrier member locks said interceptor in its operativeposition and means controlled by said carrier member when releasedwhereby said interceptor is shifted out of its operative position toallow operation of the means causing the striking of the auxiliarydetonator by the auxiliary striker.

3. A fuse as claimed in claim 1, including a pivoting flap extendingbetween the auxiliary striker and the auxiliary detonator, a springurging said flap into an inoperative position allowing the auxiliarystriker to strike the auxiliary detonator, a pin slidable transverselyof the fuse and holding the flap in position against the tension of saidspring, said means for bringing the detonator within the reach of themain striker including means operable upon firing of the missile toshift the carrier member into a position whereby detonator is withinreach of the striker and said carrier member releases the slidable pinto allow operation of the auxiliary striker.

4. A fuse as claimed in claim 1, wherein said means causing saidauxiliary striker to strike the auxiliary detonator includes at leastone member adapted to lock the auxiliary striker against movementtowards the auxiliary detonator and to be shifted through inertia at themoment of the impact into a position releasing the auxiliary striker andelastic means urging the auxiliary S U'llSQIL V VJI C H released towardsthe auxiliary detonator.

5. A fuse as claimed in claim 1, wherein said means causing saidauxiliary striker to strike the auxiliary detonator includes at leastone member adapted to lock the auxiliary striker against movementtowards the auxiliary detonator and to be shifted through inertia at themoment of the impact into a position releasing the auxiliary striker,elastic means urging the auxiliary striker when released towards theauxiliary detonator and a longitudinally slidable block against whichsaid elastic means bear and which is shifted rearwardly at the moment ofthe firing of the missile to thereby stress said elastic means andprovide it with the energy required for the striking of the auxiliarydetonator by the auxiliary striker.

1. In a fuse for a non-gyratory missile, the combination of a mainstriker, a main detonator, means for bringing the detonator into aposition within reach of the main striker at the moment of the firing ofthe missile, said means including a longitudinally slidable carrier forthe main detonator, a spring urging said carrier member towards the mainstriker, at least one longitudinally shiftable locking member holdingsaid carrier member in an inoperative position and adapted upon firingof the missile to be shifted into a position releasing said carriermember, means causing the main detonator to be struck by the mainstriker upon impact of the missile against a target, hand operable meansinsertable between the main striker and the main detonator to therebyprevent said striker from operatively strikinG said detonator, anauxiliary striker, an auxiliary detonator, means causing said auxiliarystriker to strike the auxiliary detonator with a perdetermined time lagafter said impact, missile-igniting means actuatable by either detonatorand a safety device extending to the rear of the two detonators andreleased by said locking member when the latter is shifted upon firingof the missile.
 2. A fuse as claimed in claim 1, including aninterceptor inserted between the auxiliary striker and the auxiliarydetonator, means whereby the slidable carrier member locks saidinterceptor in its operative position and means controlled by saidcarrier member when released whereby said interceptor is shifted out ofits operative position to allow operation of the means causing thestriking of the auxiliary detonator by the auxiliary striker.
 3. A fuseas claimed in claim 1, including a pivoting flap extending between theauxiliary striker and the auxiliary detonator, a spring urging said flapinto an inoperative position allowing the auxiliary striker to strikethe auxiliary detonator, a pin slidable transversely of the fuse andholding the flap in position against the tension of said spring, saidmeans for bringing the detonator within the reach of the main strikerincluding means operable upon firing of the missile to shift the carriermember into a position whereby detonator is within reach of the strikerand said carrier member releases the slidable pin to allow operation ofthe auxiliary striker.
 4. A fuse as claimed in claim 1, wherein saidmeans causing said auxiliary striker to strike the auxiliary detonatorincludes at least one member adapted to lock the auxiliary strikeragainst movement towards the auxiliary detonator and to be shiftedthrough inertia at the moment of the impact into a position releasingthe auxiliary striker and elastic means urging the auxiliary strikerwhen released towards the auxiliary detonator.
 5. A fuse as claimed inclaim 1, wherein said means causing said auxiliary striker to strike theauxiliary detonator includes at least one member adapted to lock theauxiliary striker against movement towards the auxiliary detonator andto be shifted through inertia at the moment of the impact into aposition releasing the auxiliary striker, elastic means urging theauxiliary striker when released towards the auxiliary detonator and alongitudinally slidable block against which said elastic means bear andwhich is shifted rearwardly at the moment of the firing of the missileto thereby stress said elastic means and provide it with the energyrequired for the striking of the auxiliary detonator by the auxiliarystriker.